


Love and Corruption

by AWillfullDroll



Series: Pragmatic [3]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Bad Ending (as usual), F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-07-29 00:04:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20072836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AWillfullDroll/pseuds/AWillfullDroll
Summary: Rayla retraces Callum's footsteps.





	Love and Corruption

_ **Five months after Power** _

Rayla fell to one knee, the pressure on her back was pushing her down. She had followed in Callum’s footsteps, became an Arch-Mage, a master of all primal sources, and gave them up. Just as he did, all for the power to give them want they both had wanted more than anything. A child. She remembered the day that they, no _she_, ended their relationship.

They were onto their fourth pregnancy, and they were desperately hoping this one would stick, but, their hopes weren’t high. In their previous four attempts, only one had progressed into the third month and Rayla was on the verge of her third month. Predictably she had nervous and was easily startled when Callum burst into their room, yelling at the top of his lungs.

“Rayla! Rayla! I got it!” He yelled excitedly.

“Please, Callum, quiet down!” She asked with an exasperated sigh. She loved him, but there was no talking to him when he got excited like this, and nearly everything excited him.

“Rayla, I know what to do. I found something that will help you, and the baby.” Callum blurted out, but at a much lower volume.

“What do ya mean, honey?” She asked, confused.

“I mean magic.”

“Callum, ya know that there is no healing magic.” Rayla stated.

“Oh yes there is.” Callum retorted with a smug grin.

“To ensure the lives before me, I sacrifice my arcanum, save them both.

“Thob meth evas-”

“Callum, what’re you doing?” Rayla asked him, concerned about the oddity of his voice.

“munacra ym ecifircas I-” Callum ignored her and his voice deepened and purple began to overtake his eyes, and even his veins.

“Callum, stop that this instant!” Rayla demanded, though her voice lacked all authority and was ripe with her fear.

“em erofeb sevil eht erusne-” Callum continued, as purple smoke had started to pour from his mouth, and his skin began to turn purple. Frightening Rayla, and leaving her with only one option.

Rayla punch interrupted the spell, knocking Callum back.

“Fuck! Rayla!”

“WHAT. THE. FUCK. WAS. THAT. CALLUM.” Rayla said, her voice was low, and her tone had hurt and anger in it.

“I’m sorry Rayla, but it’s the only way! I just wanted to give you-”

“Bullshit! I want a child, with ya, so badly. But not like this Callum. It’s disgusting. Ya couldn’t have possibly thought I would allow this?”

“Rayla… I-I love you… I want you to be happy!”

“Get out.” Rayla had said, she was so angry and hurt and despite her best efforts, it showed in her voice. When he didn’t move, she had practically screamed in his face, “GET OUT!”.

She had glared through the tears that started falling until Callum left, only then did she slide to floor and allow herself to sob.

Rayla endured the memory, even as she the magic flow into her. After a few minutes it lessen before stopping. Rayla paused to take a deep breath, she wanted to know why Callum acted how did, and she focused on that. Allowing a vision to overcome her.

Had she allowed her one-time lover to kill Ezran and Azymondias she how the future would have played out. The resulting war would have all but destroyed the three races, and she and Callum would have killed of the rest. Their children would have inherited the world, and they would have watched over their children for millennia. They never would have had to bury a child, and their children were just as immortal as they. They even watched their children journey to other stars and spread throughout the night sky. Eventually, even beyond that. It was a paradise. One she could never experience, not now anyways. One that would never come to be.

Coming back to the present, she sniffed and wiped away a few errant tears. Rayla knew that she needed to see the future as it could be now. So, she welcomed an onslaught of visions.

They showed a variety of futures, some in which the wars broke out again, and one race of completely exterminated. But most showed futures where elfs and humans co-existed in various manners and degrees, those were the ones that terrified her. The weapons they developed, far in time, could destroy over a million lives in a mere blink of the eye. She sought desperately for any future without such bloodshed and found only one. In which she brought Callum back, by sacrificing everyone else in the world.

Rayla opened her eyes and knew that she couldn’t do it. She could feel the unlimited power corrupting her by the minute, and she saw no other way. At this rate, it would be only a day or so before she would be unable to resist the thought of bribing Callum back.

She knew what she had to do within a few moments and drew her blade. She put it up against her heart and pulled it towards her. She felt the blade pierce her heart, and she took her last few moments to reflect. She had wanted to know what happened to Callum. Well now she knew. Love. Love and corruption.


End file.
